Independent TD Carol Nolan has said the Department of Education is placing primary schools throughout the constituency in “the invidious position of having to choose between accepting funding for a school secretary or funding for a school caretaker.”
The Laois Offaly TD was speaking after a survey by the Catholic Primary School Management Association (CPSMA) found that ‘seven out of ten primary schools have run at a deficit at some stage over the past 12 months and have had to rely on cash reserves to cover day-to-day costs due to insufficient core funding from the State.’
The Independent TD said she has been contacted by schools who were shocked to discover that they would receive absolutely no funding for caretaker services this year, funding which is normally covered through a funding mechanism termed the ancillary grant, provided by the Department of Education:
“The CPSMA survey confirms what I have been hearing from schools who are deeply frustrated by how the Department has fundamentally messed up the provision of the ancillary grant causing completely unnecessary levels of stress among school management in the process,” said Deputy Nolan.
“I am engaging with the Department on behalf of schools who have been told that because they are using ancillary services funding on a school secretary, they are entitled to nothing to assist them with pay for a caretaker,” she said .
“This is like some bad joke that the Department is playing on schools who have enough to be dealing with in terms of massively increased energy and day-to-day running costs.”
“This absurd situation must be resolved as a matter of urgency. We cannot have primary schools panicking about where they are going to find the resources to ensure that basic ancillary and caretaking works are covered.”
“It is also deeply disrespectful to our caretakers, many of whom must now be wondering where the funding for their positions is going to come from.
“This kind of robbing Peter to pay Paul policy must end,” concluded Deputy Nolan.